Apparatus and process for making bulky yarn



June 18, 1968 3,388,444

APPARATUS AND PROCESS FOR MAKING BULKY YARN G. s. BENSON mvsw-roa: Bus mv .RBzNsun.

Filed Dec. 17. 1965 United States Patent 3,388,444 APPARATUS AND PROCESS FOR MAKING BULKY YARN Gustav E. Benson, Greenville, R.I., assignor to Owens-Corning Fiberglas Corporation, a corporation of Delaware Filed Dec. 17, 1965, Ser. No. 514,544 5 Claims. (Cl. 28-42) ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A method of producing a fluid bulked composite glass fiber yarn from a plurality of yarn sources which includes the steps of attenuating streams of molten glass issuing from a bushing into continuous filament glass fibers, collecting the fibers into at least two separate strands, winding the strands on a tube comprised of at least two integral sections of different diameters with one strand to a section, positioning the tube relative to a yarn bulking device whereby strands unwound therefrom may be supplied to the device, rotating the tube to unwind the strands from each of the tube sections at linear rates proportional to the diameters of the tube sections, feeding the strands to said yarn bulking device, forming a composite bulked yarn in the device, and collecting the composite bulked yarn from the bulking device.

Also disclosed is an apparatus for feeding a plurality of yarns at different speeds from a single rotating tube.

It is desirable in certain applications to impart additional bulk and volume to continuous filament yarns or strands in order to improve their appearance and texture for use in certain woven products. One such apparatus and process for attaining this improved product is disclosed in US. Patents 2,783,609 and 2,852,906 which, in general, comprises the process of passing a generally straight, multi-filament yarn or strand through an enclosed chamber and subjecting the individual filaments to a high pressure fluid turbulence, whereby the filaments are distorted, whipped and whirled into loops and convolutions, thus creating a bulk product. Other bulking processes, such as crimping or shrinking certain of the filaments, are also known in the art.

A particularly useful embodiment of the process described in the above patents is described in US. Patent 3,097,412. In this embodiment, two separate yarns from two separate yarn sources are fed to the same fluid jet and are combined by the air turbulence to produce a composite, bulky voluminous product. One of the yarns is fed to the jet at a faster linear speed than the other yarn so that the faster fed yarn becomes a source of the whirls, loops and convolutions, while the slower fed yarn remains relatively straight. The relationship between these effect and core yarns is determined by the rate of overfeed of the effect yarn in proportion to the core yarn. In addition, the rate of feed of the slower fed core yarn is greater than the take-up rate of the composite yarn so that, in effect, each of the yarn sources is overfed but by differing amounts.

In order to produce a uniformly bulked end product, the ratio of the feed rate of each yarn to the take-up rate of the composite yarn must remain constant and also the ratio of the feed rate of the effect yarn to that of the core yarn must also remain constant. One method'of providing these constant overfeed ratios is to provide separate drive mechanisms for the feed rolls or supply tubes of both core and effect yarns and the take-up rolls Which pull the composite bulk yarn from the jet, with each of the three drive mechanisms being electrically or mechanically speed controlled to provide the proper feed 3,388,444 Patented June 18, 1968 and exit ratios. The apparatus of this method, of course, involves rather extensive and complex mechanical or electrical controls. 7

In contradistinction, it has been found, using the principles of this invention, that a fixed ratio of overfeed between the core and effect yarns is provided through use of a single yarn supply tube having two or more sections of different diameters, each section supporting a separate package of yarn, such as core and effect yarns. This apparatus is advantageous in that the rate of feed of the yarns to the texturing apparatus is maintained in constant proportion due to the difference in diameter in the supply tube sections upon which the yarns are wound.

Another object and advantage of this invention is that a multiple yarn supply may be maintained on a single spindle. Additionally, in the case where the yarns are synthetically produced by being drawn from a melt and wound on a forming tube, two or more yarns may be directly wound on the multiple section forming or supply tube simultaneously and this tube directly transferred to the texturing or bulking apparatus to serve as the yarn supply tube as previously described.

When using the multiple section or variable diameter supply tube of this invention, the core and effect yarns may be fed to the yarn texturing apparatus at a constant proportion either by driving the spindle and thus the supply tube thereon or by pulling the core yarn from the section having the smallest diameter, with the supply tube freely rotating, and thus automatically overfeeding the effect yarns at a rate in constant proportion to the diameters of the sections.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following detailed description, reference being made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a schematic view showing a double diameter forming or supply tube of the instant invention winding two separate groups or splits of yarns from a single fiber producing bushing;

FIG. .2 is a schematic diagram showing the double diameter forming tube mounted for free rotation on a spindle and used as a supply tube for two separate packages of yarn which are fed at linear speeds in constant proportion to a yarn texturing apparatus, in this case a fluid texturing jet;

FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram similar to FIG. 2 in which the forming tube of FIG. 1 is used as a supply package for two separate sources of yarn being fed to a texturing jet, but wherein the supply tube is driven by an electric motor; and

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing another embodiment of the forming tube which can be used in association with the mechanisms of FIGS. 2 and 3.

Referring first to FIG. 1, a double diameter forming tube, generally designated by reference numeral 10, is secured to the collet 11 of a conventional winder 12. In this example, the fibers being wound upon the forming tube 10 are synthetically produced continuous filament glass fibers which are drawn from a bushing 13 having a plurality of bushing tips 14. The two separate packages which are wound upon the forming tube 10 are produced by splitting the filaments into two groups or splits, each of which is passed through a gathering shoe 15 and preferably a size applicator 16. After leaving the gathering shoes 15, the two groups or splits are evenly wound upon the two sections of the forming tube 10 by a traverse apparatus 17.

The forming and Winding apparatus thus far described is conventional with the exception of the double diameter forming tube 10, which, as better seen in FIGS. 2 and 3, consists of a pair of integrally formed concentric sections having different diameters, D and d, each section providing a separate surface for winding the yarn package from one of the splits from the bushing 13. It will be apparent that filaments wound on the tube section of smaller diameter, d, will be pulled from the bushing 13 at a slower rate than those wound on a tube section having the larger diameter, D. Consequently, the filaments of the latter on the larger diameter tube will have a slightly smaller cross-sectional area or diameter than those of the former wound on a smaller diameter tube section. This slight filament diameter difference, however, is not significant and may in some applications, be desirable. As will be seen from the discussion below, an end product produced from these filaments will have inner core filaments of a relatively large size with outer effect filaments of a relatively small size. The filament size difference affects the degree of bulking at a given air pressure and feed rate within the jet and thus gives another control parameter to the bulking operation.

Alternatively, filaments of the same size may be produced, if desired, through use of a bushing 13 having different sized orifices with the filaments from the larger orifices being wound on the tube section with the larger diameter D.

Referring to FIG. 2, the double diameter forming tube 10, after removal from the collet 11 of the winder 12, is directly used as a supply tube for both core and effect yarns which are fed to a yarn bulking apparatus and are combined therein into a single composite voluminous yarn. In this example, the yarn bulking apparatus is a fluid texturing jet 18 as described in the previously mentioned US. patents. The forming tube 10 is mounted on a freely rotating shaft 19 which is journaled for rotation in a bearing 20. The yarn from a package wound on the tube section of smaller diameter, d, is, in this example, the core yarn C and is led through a pigtail 21, around a pair of driven feed rollers 22 and into the texturing jet 18. The yarn from the other tube section having the larger diameter, D, the effect yarn E, is led through another pigtail 21 and thence directly into the texturing jet 18. The composite, voluminous yarn from the texturing jet 18 is directed around a pair of driven take-up rollers 23 and thence is Wound upon a twister spindle or tension take-up winder 24.

In the above described embodiment of FIG. 2, the sole force for turning the forming tube 10 and thus unwinding the core and effect yarns C and E is the pull on the core yarn C by the feed rollers 22. The linear rate of feed of the core yarn C is determined solely by the speed of the feed rollers 22. The effect yarn E is fed to the jet 18 at a faster rate proportional to the ratio of the larger diameter D to that of the smaller diameter d. Thus the feed speed of the effect yarn E relative to that of the core yarn C is determined by the ratio of D/d. The difference in the diameters D and d, shown in FIG. 2, is exaggerated, the most commonly used ratio or amount of overfeed of the effect to the corn yarn usually varying from 5 to 50 percent. As recognized by the prior art, the amount of overfeed of the effect yarn E to the core yarn C is important in determining the bulk and other characteristics of the final composite yarn.

It will be apparent that the use of a multiple diameter forming tube 10 has several distinct advantages over the prior art. Firstly, a fixed amount of overfeed for the effect yarn E in relation to the core yarn C can be maintained by a relatively simple feed mechanism comprising only the feed rollers 22. Secondly, the single forming tube may be wound in the forming operation, as shown in FIG. 1, and then directly used in the bulking or texturing operation without the necessity of rewinding or transferring the package. Lastly, because the effect yarn E is of slightly smaller cross section or diameter, a product having relatively strong core yarns with finer effect yarns may be produced.

It will be apparent that the concept of the use of a varying diameter forming tube is not limited to the described embodiment having two tube sections. In certain applications it is desirable to have three or more tube sections, each having its own yarn source wound thereon whereby a composite yarn may be produced with a plurality of effect yarns, each having a different amount of overfeed and a different cross section. It should also be understood that the use of the variable diameter forming tube of this invention is not limited to texturing processes using a fluid texturing jet as described, but may be advantageously used with any yarn treating process where a plurality of yarn sources are fed into a yarn treating device at different feed rates.

FIG. 3 illustrates an alternate method of feeding the yarn from the double diameter forming tube It) to the texturing jet 18. In this embodiment, the forming tube 10 is secured to a shaft 19 which extends into a gearbox 25 which is driven by an electric motor 26. In this embodiment, the feed rolls 22 of the previous embodiment are eliminated and the core and effect yarns C and E are unwound from their tube sections at their proportional rates as the forming tube 10 is driven by the motor 25 and the gearbox 25. The texturing jet 18 will draw the core and effect yarns C and E through as fast as they are fed to the jet 13 by unwinding from the forming tube 10. The composite bulked yarn is again taken up by the take-up rollers 23 and wound by a twister spindle or tension take-up winder 24. The ratio of overfeed of the effect yarn E to that of the core yarn C is again controlled by the ratio of the diameters of the tube sections D/d.

It has also been discovered that, in place of the stepped forming tube having distinct sections of different diameters, a generally conical forming tube having integrally formed, sloped sections may be similarly used to control the overfeed of one of the yarns wound thereon in relation to another. As shown in FIG. 4, the conical forming tube 10a on its shaft 19 has two yarn packages wound thereon with the effect yarns E wound on the larger diameter end of the cone. In this embodiment the conically shaped forming tube is placed on the collet 11 of the winder 12 of FIG. 1, and the traverse apparatus 17 is so programed as to maintain the yarns wound on the con ical forming tube at a constant distance, measured along the axis of the cone, from one another. With this embodiment of the conical forming tube, with the core yarn rawn from the package nearest the apex of the cone and used in the feeding apparatus of FIG. 2, the amount of overfeed of the effect yarn E in relation to the core yarn C remains constant as the two yarn sources move up and down along the axis of the cone while remaining a fixed distance apart. The linear feed rate of each of the two yarns will remain constant, due to the constant feed rate of the feed rolls 22 which will vary the speed of rotation of the conical forming tube It This embodiment, when used in the apparatus of FIG. 3 in which the conical forming tube is driven, would not supply yarns at a constant feed rate. The variable feed rate might be advantageously used to produce a novelty product having areas of highly bulked, voluminous composite yarn and with intermittent areas of less bulked, less voluminous yarn.

It is to be understood that the principles of this invention may be advantageously used with any type of yarns,

continuous filaments, strands or staple fibers of synthetic or natural origin where it is desirable to feed one or more separate supplies at an overfeed rate in fixed proportion to that of another supply. Accordingly, while the above embodiments have been described with reference to synthetically formed continuous filaments, it is to be understood that the term yarn as used therein and in the following claims shall be construed to mean any of the above mentioned textile products, continuous or staple, twisted or untwisted.

Various modifications of the above described preferred embodiments of the invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art and it is to be understood that such modifications can be made Without departing from the scope and tenor of the accompanying claims.

-I claim:

1. A method of producing a fluid bulked composite glass fiber product from a plurality of strand sources which comprises attenuating streams of molten glass issuing from a bushing into continnous filament glass fibers, collecting said fibers into at least two separate strands winding said strands on a tube comprised of at least two integral sections of difierent diameters with one strand to a section, thence rotating said tube to unwind said strands from each of said tube sections at linear rates proportional to the diameters of said tube sections, feeding said unwound strands to a bulking device at said proportional linear rates, forming a composite bulked product in said device, and collecting the composite bulked product from said bulking device.

2. The method of claim 1 in which said tube is rotated by pulling and feeding the strand from the tube section having the least diameter whereby strands from said other tube sections are overfed to said bulking device.

3. A method of producing a fluid bulked composite glass fiber product from a plurality of strand sources which comprises attenuating streams of molten glass issuing from a bushing into continuous filament glass fibers, collecting said fibers into at least two separate strands, winding said strands on a tube comprised of at least two integral sections of different diameters with one strand to a section, positioning said tube relative to a bulking device whereby strands unwound therefrom may be supplied to said device, driving said tube to unwind said. strands from each of said tube sections at linear rates proportional to the diameters of said tube sections, feeding said strands to said bulking device, forming a composite bulked product in said device, and collecting the composite bulked product from said bulking device.

4. An apparatus for feeding a plurality of yarns at diiferent speeds from a single rotating supply tube, comprising a plurality of sloped, integral sections forming a generally conical tube having an axis coincident with the axis of rotation, each of said sections providing a support surface for a separate yarn package thereon, and means for rotating said supply tube at a predetermined speed whereby each of said plurality of yarns is unwound from its respective package on its respective tube section at linear rates proportional to the diameter of the tube sections.

5. A method of producing a bulk composite yarn from a plurality of separate yarn sources wound upon a single supply tube comprised of a plurality of sloped, integral sections forming a generally conical tube having an axis coincident with the axis of rotation, said method comprising rotating said supply tube to unwind yarn from each of said sources at linear rates proportional to the diameters of said tube sections, feeding said unwound yarns to a yarn bulking device at said proportional linear rate whereby composite bulked yarn is formed therein, and collecting said composite bulked yarn from said bulking device.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 822,224 5/ 1906 Ryden 242-167 1,909,277 5/1933 Jamar 242-11841 X 1,976,201 10/1934 Taylor 57-157 X 2,096,654 10/1937 Sorenson 57-90 2,220,529 11/1940 Lahr 242-1183 X 2,484,090 10/1949 Hedfield 242-1184 2,535,746 12/1950 Mitchell 242-1184 X FOREIGN PATENTS 697,776 11/1964 Canada.

590,758 7/1947 Great Britain.

828,641 2/ 1960 Great Britain.

861,327 2/ 1961 Great Britain.

899,811 6/ 1962 Great Britain.

898,812 6/1962 Great Britain.

JOHN PETRAKES, Primary Examiner. 

